Since the Bulls era, Jackson has always disliked Ah Gan, the two never got along on or off the court.
On the court, they battled in the finals; off the court, Gan Guoyang liked to occasionally undermine Jackson.
Phil Jackson was always the one on the losing side; his life's learning, skills, and cunning were useless against Ah Gan.
He was like a martial artist with eclectic knowledge, collecting secret techniques from everywhere—Buddhism today, Indian witchcraft tomorrow, motivational movies the day after, and then the Bible later; he could do a bit of everything and put on a decent show, and ordinary people couldn't withstand him.
But when he encountered Gan Guoyang, a direct and strong force like a righteous dragon who regrets, he punched through all your flashy tricks.
What made Phil Jackson even more uncomfortable was that, over time, he realized Ah Gan was not clueless about flashy stuff—in fact, he knew more than you did, and he really understood it, not just pretending.
Take Eastern philosophy for example, Jackson was always discussing this Zen and that Tao, during one All-Star Game, they chatted briefly, and Ah Gan, with his abundant knowledge, made Jackson realize that his stuff was all superficial.
At that time, Gan Guoyang defined Jackson's philosophy as, "What you encounter as so-called Zen is more an aesthetic concept than a religious or philosophical one."
Basically, he was saying that Jackson's expertise was just for show, which made Jackson quite ashamed.
Later on, the 9/11 incident propelled Gan Guoyang to the religious mysticism forefront.
Sects that worshipped Ah Gan were established in various parts of America, and his portraits were hung extensively.
This achievement was beyond what any basketball player could achieve; some even said that Ah Gan had become a god completely, just shy of one shot to the head, dying to ascend to the deity ranks.
As a result, after 9/11, Gan Guoyang had to ramp up his security; now, even for his morning runs, he had to bring plenty of bodyguards along.
It's said that companion Porter was asked to wear the same sportswear as Gan Guoyang, in case, in the dim dawn, he could help shield a bullet—of course, these are all media rumors.
Anyway, this complex and mysterious character on the court consistently defeated you with rock-hard strength; anyone would feel this is a nightmare.
After arriving at the Lakers, Jerry West said more than once, "Time is on our side; when Ah Gan retires, it will be our era."
Initially, Jackson was unconvinced, but after getting brutally beaten in the 2000 playoffs, Jackson was completely convinced.
By the 2001 season when Ah Gan retired, the Lakers rose to win the championship, and indeed old Jerry proved his eye for talent, having assisted the Trail Blazers for four consecutive championships in Portland.
However, West didn't foresee that this guy Ah Gan could make a comeback.
Originally, Gan Guoyang invited West to Las Vegas to attend the Glory Team's unveiling match.
But the stubborn old man didn't want to go, stayed at home in Los Angeles to take a nap, waiting for his son to tell him the match result.
After Jackson called a timeout, he replaced the starting players back onto the court, having lost Tracy McGrady and Fisher, the Lakers' offensive power in the transition phase couldn't keep up.
He further emphasized defense, stressed obstructing the distribution of the ball by the Glory Team, and mustn't lose position.
As for Ah Gan, Jackson decided to keep man-to-man defense, you're 37 already, I don't believe you can score 50 points on me?
As long as Ah Gan doesn't use passing to boost the Glory Team's offense, the Lakers still have a good chance of winning.
The one defending Gan Guoyang turned into Robert Horry, with Scottie Pippen as backup, Samaki Walker had to rest a bit.
Horry, as an all-around warrior, was good at both offense and defense, and had nerves of steel in crucial moments, making him a favorite jack-of-all-trades player for every coach.
From the Rockets to the Lakers, Horry has been active on the frontline against Ah Gan.
He was also one of the few in the league who didn't fear Ah Gan; regardless of offense or defense, he dared to face him head-on and caused trouble, earning himself Ah Gan's high regard as an opponent.
After Horry came on, receiving the ball outside the line, he drew Gan Guoyang's defense and delivered a direct pass to O'Neal under the basket.
Tomjanovich's idea was just like Jackson's—insisting on single-defense for O'Neal, no double-teaming.
As a result, when O'Neal received the ball at a deep position, he turned to press Brad Miller and delivered a heavy dunk!
Another thunderous dunk shook the basket, knocking Miller off easily like a paper man.
Miller had no solution; at this point, O'Neal had reached the peak of his weight and power, as long as it wasn't Gan defending, he feared no one.
Meanwhile, Gan Guoyang was being doggedly entangled by Robert Horry on the offensive end, so he handed the ball to Arenas, who attempted a breakthrough to challenge the Lakers' defense.
His abrupt stoppage and jump shot still didn't land, Arenas hesitantly unable to kick off, and the Lakers seized this opportunity to reclaim the lead, establishing a 5-point advantage.
The entire game's rhythm was still controlled by the Lakers, especially after Pippen came on, taking on the team's handling and organizing tasks; as for the point guard, whether Lindsey Hunter or Tyronn Lue, mainly served as spot-up shooters or transitional organizers.
The Trail Blazers couldn't exert enough pressure on Pippen, Gerald Wallace was too young, full of enthusiasm but lacking skill and experience, not a match for the seasoned veteran Pippen.
In some attempts at tight defense, either committing fouls or getting bypassed, trail blazers consequently disrupted their whole defensive line.